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Change. It’s an inevitable part of life. We grow older, sometimes wiser. Things never really stay the same… even though some people say they do.

I haven’t written since July. A lot of change has been going on. It started with a notion and then that notion quickly became reality.

What you may or may not know is that as much as I embrace change, it’s also really hard.

Over the summer, I had the notion that I wanted a new job. It wasn’t something that just sort of materialized. I would say, it was an evolution of sorts. So, I started looking…casually.

I looked for a new job, not because I hated my current position… my now former co-workers but current and forever friends were and are fabulous… but more or less, because I felt I wasn’t growing nor would I have the full opportunity to grow. Kind of like wings being clipped or melting even… the closer I got to the “sun”.

I was getting bored and frustrated (although not necessarily frustrated because I was bored).

So, this new job opportunity came and I decided to take it. It was my moment to advance.

Leaving my old company was probably one of the hardest things i’ve ever had to do. It’s hard leaving a place that you love with people that you love even more. No matter how much you know that the new experience that you are moving toward is going to be “good for you”, it’s still hard. It is far easier to be comfortable and bored.

I am just about 3 months in at the new place. I gotta say…. I don’t hate it. I’m dipping my toes lightly into the culture. There are many things that I enjoy. Probably my most favorite thing that I enjoy is the growth and the knowledgebase increase that is happening within me.

I don’t know that I can say that it is “better”… it’s just different.

I’ve never been good at change… something else always suffers as a result. So, my weight-loss journey was that something during this round.

With all of the angst (and believe me, there was some angst) of potential changes, the impending changes and finally the changes… I have fallen off the wagon. The damn wagon, rolled somewhere down the path and it was out of sight for awhile. I am slowly but surely catching up to it with full intentions of jumping back on.

I’m feeling good about where things are headed for me — both career-wise and with my weight-loss journey. I just need to fit weight-loss and fitness back into my life.

The Changing of Things: Has change ever thrown you off of your weight loss journey? How did you handle it?

I gained about 10lbs over the holidays. Yay me. I am keeping up with the statistics.

I’ve gotta admit, I was kind of scared to step back on the scale. I have pretty much ignored the scale since Halloween. Well, tried to ignore. There were plenty of times that I walked past the scale and sneaked a glance at it, just waiting for it to call me out on my negligence. Even though the scale didn’t yell at me, my conscience nagged at me a little.

The funny thing is, the 10lb weight gain didn’t happen over night. It happened gradually. First, with one bite of this and one bite of that. Then, I started skipping days of logging my food items. Finally, I stopped caring (just a little).

I found that when I am not logging my food items on a daily basis, it is easy for me to “play dumb” and ignore the quantities and calories that I am racking up. At first, I was still mindful of how many calories I was taking in. But then, after ignoring it long enough, I stopped mindfully eating altogether. I stopped logging and I stopped caring. Not because I wanted to gain the weight back… but because it was the holidays. So I figured, “eh. What the hell.”

Once New Year’s had passed, I felt a renewed sense of purpose to get back on the healthy track. In order to truly get back on track, however, I knew I needed to take an honest look at where I had been. So, I stepped on the scale. I knew… KNEW that I had gained weight. I even guessed (correctly, I might add), that I gained more than 5 pounds. My clothes started feeling a little tighter and overall, I just felt waterlogged. Sluggish. Tired. All of the holiday delicacies, the mountains of sugar and chocolate, greasy food and caffeine caught up with me.

This week has been a successful re-boot. I’m back to logging my food faithfully. I’ve got an exercise schedule all made up. I’m ready to continue my journey.

The holidays are a time to bask in the warmth of time spent with friends and family. We rejoice. We enjoy. We stress.

This holiday and holidays that have passed I always seem to stumble across articles that discuss the subject of holiday eating and “how tos” on not over-eating on Thanksgiving or Christmas.

I say… one day a year of enjoying a holiday feast on the real holiday will not haunt you for life. It is the 50-ish days in between that we really have to watch out for. Around my office, someone is always bringing in holiday goodies and sampling. There are lots of parties to attend and all involve food. Let’s be honest. It’s not always easy to “be good” around the holidays.

It’s so easy to fall into a pit filled with sugar cookies, peanut clusters and buckeyes around this time of year. That is why, I have come up with a “holiday plan”. Just a gentle reminder that I have compiled in list form so that I have a plan of action.

1. Before Thanksgiving, watch what I eat. This includes Halloween candy. Reese’s Peanut Butter cups are hard to ignore.

2. Thanksgiving — enjoy the day, enjoy the people and enjoy the food.

3. After Thanksgiving, watch what I eat. Sample a cookie or goodie here or there but don’t make it a priority. It is okay to say no to things like this.

4. During the month of December, start holiday baking but only sample here or there. Keep moderation in mind for the kids as well.

5. Christmas Eve & Christmas Day — enjoy the day, enjoy the people and enjoy the food.

6. After Christmas? Business as usual.

New Year has never been a big thing for me. Nine times out of ten, I fall asleep before the ball drops.